Prepping for big shows like SEMA and CES can be daunting. But for some of the
Top 12, including Installer of the Year, Chris Pate, making the most of them is all a
matter of planning and following some simple guidelines. Find out how the Top 12
conquer Las Vegas.

While some stores have a focused product and service offering, such as servicing
only high-end clientele or being hot rod-centric, Main Street Stereo has made its
bones by saying yes to all opportunities, even if that means outsourcing work to keep
the client happy.

38 // The Support Team: Installer Institute

Since 1992, Metra’s Installer Institute has been providing an option to installers
who wanted to join the 12-volt work force but didn’t know where to start. With a
major shortage of qualified installation techs in the field, this accredited school might
just be what is needed to continue building new generations for years to come.

44 // Strategy & Tactics: Store and Staff Performance Evaluation

With the New Year upon us, it’s important for every retailer to have a strategy for
both how to improve productivity and increase profitability. One of the best ways to
do both is through an evaluation of the previous year’s successes and failures, learning
from all and implementing changes based on what was discovered. Find out how toptier retailers like Bryan Turvaville and John Haynes handle this critical retail staple.

48 // Tech Today: The Jeep and the iPad

Joey Knapp sits this one out by relinquishing the reigns of the feature to a
respected fabricator and friend, Josh Gobble, who takes readers through the trials
and tribulations of installing an iPad Mini into a Jeep Wrangler. Gobble covers
everything from creating mounts to the challenges of functionality when the vehicle drives on rough terrain.

16
ARTICLES
16 Retail News/Who’s Who
54 Installs

On the Cover
We wanted to mix it up this issue and create a
cover that reflected every element of our featured retailer, Main Street Stereo. Creating a
cover like this requires knowing everything
about the company, what makes them tick,
what their focus is on and how we can reflect
that to the readers. Since this company is all
about saying yes to customers, we wanted to
show that on the cover. Hopefully we did our
job. Happy New Year!
COVER DESIGN: Ana Ramirez

HD Radio
Technology is
available from
today’s leading
electronics
manufacturers

a

solution

HDRadio.com
me-mag.com 5

editor’s forum

Want to Win
in 2018?
Start in 2017

If you’re trying to prevail in the Industry Awards,
you’re already four months behind schedule.
Two years ago, after a promising contestant narrowly lost the
Installer of the Year contest to a well-deserving guy with an imminent newborn delivery, that contestant came up to me and said
three words: “I’m starting today.”
A year later, that same contestant was hugging his wife and
kids with tears in his eyes before taking the stage to claim our
industry’s highest technical honor.
Ask him what he did (and he’ll gladly tell you), and he will
say that everything he did from that day forward in some way
increased his chances of winning. Helping other technicians and
fabricators online. Participating in KnowledgeFest. Asking clients
for positive reviews. Elevating the knowledge level of his staff.
Keeping pictures and notes of his builds, and of course planning
for the perfect entry vehicle for next year’s competition.
It was a plan, though not a disingenuous one. He’s always been
a helper, a perfectionist, a good guy. But he is also a competitor,
and his plan simply took the things he did naturally and dialed
them up.
The Mobile Electronics Industry Awards competition isn’t
easy. It’s not about buddies or popularity or reputation. Every
year it starts over. Every year, another technician, fabricator,
sales professional, retailer, rep or supplier has the opportunity
to be noticed, recognized or applauded. So as we begin 2018, ask
yourself: is this your year? If so, it’s past time to get started, so
let’s get you caught up!

Every year, another technician, fabricator,
sales professional, retailer, rep or supplier
has the opportunity to be noticed,
recognized or applauded.
• Make a commitment. As with any goal, first you must set
one. You need to tell yourself that you or your business will make
Top 50, Top 12, or any of the awards that end in “of the Year.” This
needs to be a shared goal with everyone in your business, even if
you are going for an individual award. Previous winners will tell
you that having the support of co-workers, whether for physical
help in developing an entry or just communal support, is vital to
your effort.

6 Mobile Electronics January 2018

• Collect email addresses. This is something you should be
doing anyway, because building rapport through repeated interactions yields way better results than attracting new customers. But
for the awards, having this communications avenue lets you get
your customers excited about your goal and participate in helping
you achieve it.
• Solicit and save reviews. It’s not a bad thing to ask a customer to give you a good review. In fact, there are software
options that make it easy and enable them to do it in store. You
can then reference these reviews in your award submissions.
• Keep a record of all the cool things that have happened
through the year. Make it part of your routine once per week
to record significant events in your business or career. It’s a lot
easier to reference a OneNote or Evernote file with all your year’s
accomplishments than to sit around prior to award time scratching your head and trying to remember.
• Take pictures. Another thing that should already be part
of what you do. Use Dropbox or OneDrive and set your smartphones to automatically upload images to it. That way you’ll have
a library, sorted by date and location of everything you’ve done
for easy reference.
• If you’re going for an installer award, plan your featured install.
Don’t wait until the Industry Awards start to work on a car. Your
customers may not be there when you are finally ready. And
don’t use the excuse of not getting a good enough job in the bay
to show your creativity. If this is something that’s really important to you, use your own car or someone else’s. Remember:
you’re investing in your profession.
• Give in to your natural inclination to help others. We all want
to help. But some of us put roadblocks in the way. Remove these
mental roadblocks and answer a question or two online.
• And finally, be proud of yourself. Take a look at the list
we’ve created. If you did everything on this list, how much
better of a business or professional would you be? That’s probably the most fulfilling thing I hear from the Top 12: even
though they are planning for an award, the true prize is the
insight they gained about the business, themselves and their
potential in the process.
If you haven’t started already, now’s the time. Whether I end
up sending you a certificate or you end up joining me on stage
in Dallas, the effort will definitely be worth it.
facebook.com/MobileElectronics

 feedback

Rep of the Year

(A Retailer’s Perspective)
Joe Cassity says Bill Freeman takes the cake thanks
to his intimate involvement with his business, while
Kenny McCardie picked Scott Boughman due to his
help with various product line support. Who would
you pick?
“Scott Boughman; he helped
us grow our Focal business
and provided support to the
other lines we offer that he
reps.” Kenny McCardie, Auto
Sound Tint World, Union City,
Calif.

“Thom Lerch. I speak to him
weekly. He always keeps me on top
of any specials going on. Some reps
I don’t speak to for months at a
time.” Anonymous
“Bill Freeman with MAG sales is
my number one rep. Bill is our
Kenwood, RF, VOXX, 5-axis and
AudioControl rep. He’s intimately
involved in our business and goes
above and beyond, ranging from
negotiating deals to physically
helping us around the store when
needed. Bill certainly takes excellent care of us and clearly values
our business with all his lines.”
Joe Cassity, Tune-N-Tint, Lakeland, Fla.
“Thom Lerch of Memphis audio.
He visits the store regularly, calls
often and is helpful when problems
arise.” Anonymous
“Brian Cargile of AVR Distributing. He goes way above being a
rep and will help with anything.”
Anonymous

8 Mobile Electronics

January 2018

“Justin Smith at DAS. He is
our rep for accessories like
Stinger, Metra, PAC, Attends,
NAV-TV, etc. He always goes
above and beyond to help
locate odd pieces in a timely
manner. If he can’t get it he suggests a replacement option, even
if it’s not something he carries. He
truly wants our business and cares
about his customers.” David Phillips,
The Sound Shop, Indian Trail, N.C.
“Don Geiger visited the shop more
than any other rep. He called the
shop to see what he could do more
than any other.” Anonymous
“Fred Isensee. He has been great
with Sony. Always finds the info I
need and keeps me up to date on
promos and special buys.” John
Schmitz, Mach 1 Audio, Washington, Mo.
“Lester Kahn. He is in my shop a
lot, there when I need him and he
gets things done.” Anonymous
“Matt Julius. Matt got me onto the
Memphis brand and we’ve had great
success. In working with him and
Davis Distribution, it has been nothing short of exciting.” Brett Hall, Crist
Motorsports/Mobile Sound Solutions,
Angola, Ind.

Legendary JBL audio performance is now available to take on the trails, the desert or anywhere else your next adventure takes you. The new JBL STADIUM
UB4000 Powersports Soundbar is jam-packed with all the most enticing features, including the singular JBL audio performance. Plus, our bar can
be mounted as a single unit or as two separate pods. The installation options are endless. See it in action at WWW.JBL.COM/POWERSPORTS

The Financial Diet:
A Total Beginner’s
Guide to Getting
Good with Mone
By Chelsea Fagan
and Lauren Ver Hage

This is the time to honor those New
Year’s resolutions—to eat healthy, to
get to the gym, and to start a diet. A financial diet, that is. Maybe
you have a healthy savings account, 401(k), a great credit score,
and no revolving debt. Or maybe none of that is true and you
need a tune-up. To make the best decisions with your dollars,
this is a great book to give yourself. What makes it an easy read
is that it’s a book about personal finance for those out there who
just aren’t wired for personal finance. Whether you need to curb
your overspending, pay off a student loan, or just figure out how
to pay the bills on an entry-level salary, this book gives you the
tools to make a budget, understand investments, and deal with
your credit. Read this book to get good with money, to establish a
budget that you will stick to, and what it means to invest. It will be
an investment of your time with many returns.

10 Mobile Electronics January 2018

Sites To See:

TRENDHUNTER.com
www.trendhunter.com

As a retail store owner, salesperson or installer, it can’t hurt to
keep up with trends. With more than 60,000,000 monthly views,
TrendHunter.com is the world’s largest, most popular trend community. Based in Toronto, Canada, the site is fueled by a global network
of 155,000 members and 3,000,000 fans. It is a unique source of
inspiration for industry professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs, and
the insatiably curious. Each day, Trend Hunter features a daily dose
of innovative ideas, viral news, and sometimes wacky pop culture.
Visitors to the site look at an average of 20 articles each visit. Some
recent pieces included: 40 Fidget Toy Gifts, Tech-Fueled Smart City
Developments and Parcel-Delivering Robots.

App: Sorry
Free for iOS
ILaunched by Greta Van Susteren, the former CNN, Fox News and MSNBC host, and
with more than a year in development, this new free app helps you feel better about
asking for forgiveness. As we all know, saying you’re sorry can be a humbling and
vulnerable act. Basically, the app teaches you how to make things right with the
ones you’ve wronged. View real apologies from real people who’ve messed up, took
charge, and are turning the page. Leave and receive feedback that you can learn
from. Learn to make amends and inspire others along the way when you begin every
apology with Sorry!

Services:

Staples Business Advantage
go.staplesadvantage.com/perfectworkplace.
As the workplace evolves, so do customer and employee expectations. An
often overlooked resource, Staples Business Advantage offers total solutions with customized pricing and local service for everything from furniture,
to janitorial supplies, to break room makeovers. This contract division of
Staples has experts who can help you maximize your workspace, which can
be challenging when you have a retail space, installation bay and office area.

facebook.com/MobileElectronics 11

 what’s happening

Trade Shows for
Retailers: Here’s How
the Top 12 Conquer
Las Vegas.
WORDS BY TED GOSLIN

T

ravel takes work. Whether
you’re traveling for work or
play, there’s always more
involved than just packing
a bag and jumping on a plane. There
are costs, time constraints, the hotel
reservation, and scheduling to consider, among other things that might
pop up. Now imagine doing it all as
an entrepreneur. The obstacles might
as well triple.
This month, CES takes hold of Las
Vegas, along with various companies
that showcase throughout the city.
Along with it comes hundreds of thousands of people, overbooked flights
and hotels, expensive cabs or rideshare rates, full schedules with reps
and spotty cell phone service due to
the number of calls and text flowing
through cell towers by the second. But
like everything else in life, you can
bet someone out there knows how to
navigate the murky waters of a trade
show trip to make it work for them.
For Top 12 retailers Ata Ehdaivand,
Ethan Blau and Chris Pate, who’s
also the current Installer of the Year,
there is no trade show that can’t
be conquered on the way to retail
supremacy.

Pre-Show Prep
There are many reasons to attend a
trade show like CES or SEMA. Perhaps
a store is losing to a competitor and
needs to find a new product or line at a
more competitive price point. Perhaps
they just need to know what’s new on

12 Mobile Electronics

January 2018

the market so they can keep up with
the latest technology. Maybe they don’t
have a reason and it’s a spur of the
moment trip because a friend is going
and it might be fun. All of these reasons
are acceptable for a retailer headed to
a big trade show, according to Top 12
Retailer, Ata Ehdaivand, owner of Absolute Electronix.
“I go to SEMA because I’m a car
guy and there are more advantageous things at that than me sitting
on my computer. I get the experience
of people and I don’t have to wonder
about what the product is. I can see
it, feel it, touch it. It’s the same reason
I have showrooms in our store,”
Ehdaivand said. “I’m trying to get a
fresh idea of what’s going on in the
actual marketplace. All these companies do research of what’s coming or

happening. We try to get out in front
of it.”
To prep for a trip, Ehdaivand believes
the first thing a retailer should do is
reach out to industry colleagues. Doing
so allows you to know who else you
can connect with when you’re there,
and gives you an idea of what booths to
check out while you’re on the show floor.
“Some of the best information I get
is from some of my colleagues in the
industry. You can’t do CES or SEMA by
yourself and get every nugget there is,”
Ehdaivand said. “Instead of doing all
the leg work at the convention center,
you find out what else was cool if you
skipped it or missed it.”
If possible, going with someone
from the start is also a good way to go,
according to Installer of the Year Chris
Pate, who travels to shows with his wife

The Winner’s Way

Attending other parts of a trade show is an important way to
stay ahead of the technology curve since everything in electronics could potentially impact a retailer’s bottom line.

each year. His strategy, however, differs
from others in that he already has a
grasp of new products on the market
thanks to his connections with manufacturers. “We approach things a little
differently. We don’t so much worry
about the products and stuff. We know
what products are coming out from beta
testing. We use it for networking and set
up special deals,” he said. However, traveling with staff is typically not needed,
according to Ehdaivand, since there are
few trainings to attend and most work
can be done solo.
Both Ehdaivand and Pate use credit
card points to purchase airline tickets
and hotel rooms, which makes trips to
Las Vegas much more affordable. They
recommend accruing points on credit
cards for that very reason. “The convention center is not that far from almost
anything. I try to stay where it’s reasonable,” Ehdaivand said. “Wherever I stay,
had I gone to CES, I’d stay at the same
hotel. You get into a hotel room that
smells like cigarettes then you’re not
really having fun.”

Speaking of fun, another tip is to
ensure that you remember why you’re
attending. Here’s a hint: It’s not just to
gamble and drink—but that’s not out
of the question. Ethan Blau, owner of
Sound Wave Customs in Virginia Beach,
Va., believes both are possible and necessary during a big trade show trip, but
require just a little discipline. “I’m more
about waiting until dinner, networking and having some fun, depending
on what I have planned the next day.
You don’t want to go overboard because
it’s Vegas,” he said. “There’s so much to
see that I’d like to get there when the
floor opens. That’s what brings you back
every year.”

Floor Strategies
If the purpose of your trip is to fill a
hole in your product line, the trade show
is the place to be. Not only will you see
the best products companies will likely
have for the year, but you’ll get the
opportunity to purchase deals that you
won’t find the rest of the year—if you
have the money to spend, that is.

“All the manufacturers usually have
great discounts at CES. It’s a great place
if you have the ability to make a large
inventory purchase. It’s not unusual to
buy $15,000 worth of product and get
a 10 to 20 percent discount on it,” Pate
said. “They’ll also offer you extended
dating for when the bills are due. We’ll
probably do $60,000 in orders at CES
and we’re not a huge shop.”
Knowing when to make a change to
a product or line for Pate comes down
to the price point. “Is it going to fit into
the slot we’re replacing? Can we buy
at a similar margin?” he said. “Also,
you should do research on how bad
the returns are. You don’t want replace
one line with another to find out it has
a higher defective rate. I recommend
talking to other vendors who have sold
the product and find out what their
experience is.”
For Blau, planning is less important
than walking the floor once to get a lay
of the land and see if anything stands
out enough for him to learn more. “I
have general ideas, look at maps and
facebook.com/MobileElectronics

13

 what’s happening

Some retailers choose to attend one show over another
(SEMA Show above, CES bottom left) based on how it might
impact their business.

Networking at events like KnowledgeFest (pictured here) is
one of the best ways to make the most of major trade shows
like CES and SEMA.

times, mark what I don’t want to miss,
see if there are other things I’m not
aware of. There’s not enough time to see
everything you’d really like to see,” Blau
said. “I feel like I drink five Red Bulls
without drinking one because it’s nonstop. I get energized just by being there
because there’s so much to do.”
When at booths, Blau looks for what’s
new, which direction a company is
moving in and likes to chat with the
reps since a one-on-one experience
usually delivers more information than
just browsing on your own. “See what
they can offer you and your customers
and how it fits your business model,” he
said. Sometimes the hype of a product
might not meet expectation, despite
how much research you do. “One issue
was the hype on the Phoenix Gold DSP.
It was a brand new category to them
and we were super excited about it but
it didn’t end up panning out how we

14 Mobile Electronics

January 2018

thought it would. They’re a great company and offer other great products and
support, but sometimes you get excited
and invested in these things and they
don’t end up working out for whatever
reason.”

Lights on the Horizon
When it comes to keeping up with
new tech, there’s no better way than to
walk the show floor, even outside of the
12-volt zone. “I like to broaden my horizons. In all of 12-volt, it’s a known fact
that the industry continues to change.
You have to stay current,” Blau said. “I
know plenty of shops that have been
successful with truck accessories and
other categories. We do a lot of lighting.
It’s a huge category for us.”
“We’ll scoot through the other halls,”
Pate added. “At one point, we wanted
to buy a 3D printer, so we researched
it. It pays to know what’s going on. You

might not know what little item you
might find that will make a key difference for your store.”
Knowing more about technology can
also help sell products, according to
Ehdaivand. “It translates to the client
because when you’re sitting around chatting, you can talk about new tech and
look more like a professional in front of
clients,” he said. “The more you know
what you’re talking about, the better.”
Overall, Blau believes that the best
strategy for attending the major trade
shows is to never dismiss an idea or
product because it might be just what
you need to change your store for the
better. “You’ve got to have an open
mind and think outside the box,” he
said. “Make new relationships, network, try new categories you might be
interested in. You never know where
those relationships can go, either
short-term or long-term.”

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15

 retail news

Coastal Connections

By attending the
Coastal Virginia Auto
Show, Sound Wave
Customs has broadened its customer
base and community
involvement one car
lover at a time.
WORDS BY LAURA KEMMERER

16 Mobile Electronics January 2018

The Coastal Virginia Auto Show
recently celebrated its third iteration,
clocking in at 300 cars present, along
with a variety of vendors. For Ethan
Blau of Virginia Beach-based Sound
Wave Customs, this has proven to be a
unique opportunity for both community building and getting involved with
an event from day one.
Blau’s involvement with the Coastal
Virginia Auto Show started with an old
friend who is an on-air personality for
a local radio station. “He’s a big car guy.
He loves custom stuff, different things.

Because he’s pretty high up in the
station, they just decided that this area
needs a better car show.” While Blau
emphasized that there was nothing
wrong with the car shows already in
place, they seemed to more focus on a
niche, rather than something larger.
This year was the third iteration of
the Coastal Virginia Auto Show and
there was a focus on keeping it classy,
according to Blau, while still keeping a
little something for everyone. He noted
that Sound Wave Customs has been
“involved since before day one.”

Some of the celebrities present included Joe Kenda of Homicide Hunter
fame, among others. The show itself also
included a lineup of charities.
“For the outside show, a lot of the
proceeds when to the local foodbanks,”
Blau said. For the inside show, proceeds
went to the Thomas Foundation.
Even though the car show had something of a slow start, the numbers built
over time, totaling at a presence of over
300 cars this year. The trick to making
the show a success? Not letting a slow
start be a deterrent to future growth,

according to Blau.
Another vendor that attended this
year’s show was Eastern Truck and
Accessories—a local premiere off road
truck and accessories shop. “They had a
huge booth, a lot of demo stuff. There’s
a lot of people: Do It Yourself Garage,
AG Wraps and Sumo Speeds,” among
others, Blau added.
For Sound Wave Customs, being
involved with such a show definitely helps increase brand awareness, as the shop itself is relatively
small compared to other well-known

companies at the show.
In the long term, Sound Wave
Customs’ presence at the car show
has “brought in customers who went
to that event and came back to have
something done later,” Blau said.
The shop also set up a few displays
demonstrating its capabilities, which
also helped to draw customers. Blau
sees the event as a means to help
build a community around the shop,
opening the door for local network
opportunities and staying in touch
with older friends.

Speaker of the House
By partnering with a local
speaker box company,
RPM Speed & Custom has
improved its operation in
more ways than one.
WORDS BY LAURA KEMMERER

Business success can sometimes come
from unexpected places. For Josh
Mertzig of RPM Speed & Custom in
Sheboygan, Wisc., a partnership with
a local speaker box manufacturer has
both enabled him to keep a low inventory and gain access to custom-made

speaker boxes whenever needed.
Mertzig said that he has known
Jeremy Weber, owner of Sound Mekanix,
for close to 25 years, and the friendship
began with Weber as a customer of
Mertzig’s. As the Sound Mekanix business continued to grow, Mertzig went
there for custom speaker boxes.
“More recently, in the last couple
of years, he got into doing speaker
adapters. With the speaker adapters,
we do a lot of the prototyping for him,”
Mertzig said. “So, if we get a car where
we need to replace the speakers and
we open up the door and find, hey,
there needs to be an adapter here,
we’ll call him up and either he’ll run

over and take pictures or we’ll take
one of the factory speakers and bring
it over to him. We’ll get stuff figured
out and we’ll get something made.”

“Whenever we get a car
to replace its speakers, we
provide Weber at Sound
Mekanix with input for new
speaker adapters. From sizing,
to fitment, we help determine
what vehicles they fit and
increase his catalog offerings.”
Josh Mertzig, RPM Speed &
Custom
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 17

 retail news

Who’s Who
Faces in the Industry
Luke Farley

RPM Speed & Custom saves time during installations like this by outsourcing speaker box work
to Sound Mekanix.

Lynx Customs, Ltd.
Denver, Co.
Years of industry experience: 10
Hobbies: Family
What You’re Best At: Running a
business

Stan Clark

Absolute Audio, Ltd.
Bel Air, Md.
Years of industry experience: 25
Hobbies: Fishing
What you’re really good at:
Being A dad and husband

On its website, Sound Mekanix has a list of offerings,
including speaker adapters, enclosure accessories
and custom box creation, which RPM uses regularly.

For Mertzig, the partnership with Sound Mekanix
made sense: it both saved time and would result in a
better end product. Mertzig, who is an installer, can focus
on getting installs done with this arrangement, and he
does not have to worry about taking the time to build the
speaker box itself.
“He’s cataloged almost every single speaker box he’s built
in his life,” Mertzig added. “So he knows what worked,
what didn’t work, what’s the perfect size for each woofer,
and has all the brands listed so he knows what brands
work with what woofers for a majority of dealers he works
with.”
When it comes its customers, Sound Mekanix seeks to
deliver a consistently high-quality product that is handmade in the U.S.
“Whenever we get a car to replace its speakers, we
provide Weber at Sound Mekanix with input for new
speaker adapters,” Mertzig said. “By outsourcing our
speaker box and CNC needs, it allows us to focus on
installing, and scheduling more work.”

Fresh Tech
The 2018 CES Innovations Awards saw winners from
across the 12-volt and connected car landscapes, from a
new heads up display to a creative take on the rear view
mirror and dash camera concept.
20â&#x20AC;&#x201A; Mobile Electronics January 2018

Ac2ated Sound - Speakerless
Audio System by Continental
Audio Systems
Inspired by the functional principle of
string instruments, Continental seeks to
reinvent the car audio system by replacing conventional loudspeakers with
actuators that create sound by vibrating certain surfaces in the vehicle. The
speaker-less audio system brings many
advantages, including lower weight,
reduced box volume and lower electricity consumption. The invisible car audio
technology can be integrated into any
car model from high end sedans to small
electric vehicles.

Ray Digital Rear View Mirror &
Dash Camera by Papago Inc.
Ray has incorporated a rear-view camera
that renders a real-time feed of a driver’s surroundings onto its 7.8-inch screen.
Ray’s field of the view is designed to be
superior to a traditional rear-view mirror,
which helps to reduce blind spots and
enhances traffic safety by providing a
clear view of a driver’s surroundings. Ray
is also a dash camera and is capable of
recording both front and rear views in
case of an incident.

GEKO PanicSafe
Emergency Locator
and Fast Charger
The PanicSafe comes
equipped with Bluetooth
technology to allow pairing
between it and the WISO
app. It syncs with any phone
and app via Bluetooth and
that allows texts/emails/
call to be sent once PanicSafe has been activated.
The app uses a device’s GPS
signal to include location on the texts and emails. When PanicSafe is activated, friend or loved ones will receive the SOS
alerts containing simple and discreet location info on a map
straight to their phone or email. Thereafter, the WISO app will
update your contacts with your current location every three
minutes, until alert is deactivated. Other features include the
option to create an audio recording, an internal power supply
if the in-car power supply is disrupted, and four-times faster
charging than other chargers on the market.

PiLOTHUD
by Futurus Technology Co.
This new heads up
display offers crystal clear images,
enhanced performance during both
day and night to
increase safety,
customized antennas and chips for
enhanced communication features and
ease of use through
both voice and
remote control to be
compatible with the
dashboards of different vehicle brands. Other core features
include OBD connection, 4G network compatibility and social
communication capabilities.

facebook.com/MobileElectronics

21

 hot sellers
LOOK-IT Wireless Rear Vision
System by VOXX Electronics
The LOOK-IT backup camera connects
wirelessly to any smartphone. Its technology ensures optimal connectivity speed
and image quality at all times. The device
is designed as do-it-yourself, replacing
the license plate using a screwdriver. No
wiring or hole drilling is necessary. Users
only need to download the smartphone
app to calibrate grid lines and establish
the preferred warning distance. Features
include backup lines to help with parallel
parking, a 45-degree swivel camera and
the device’s ability to be configured to
automatically switched on when the vehicle is placed in reverse.

Dragon Drive Auto Assistant With MultiModal Collaboration by Nuance
Nuance, a leader in conversational interface technology,
has introduced an artificially intelligent automotive
assistant does more than just listen. The Dragon Drive
platform uses AI and natural language understanding to go way beyond interpreting simple commands.
It understands human speech and meaning to analyze what’s being said and delivers a response. Dragon
Drive’s entire stack is powered by innovative machine
learning and contextual reasoning to create an AI platform optimized for the connected car.

Edge3 Ambient
Sensing Node

Transformer Dual Dash Cam
The Transformer is a pocket-sized dash camera DVR with
two independent cameras and a split screen micro LCD screen
for playback/review. The detachable rear lens can be attached
beside the main unit to record the inner view of the car or
be placed on the rear windshield to record what’s happening
behind the car.

22 Mobile Electronics January 2018

This new product
detects, monitors and
alerts car owners of children or pets that may be
left behind inside vehicles. The Ambient Sensing
Node is a first of its kind,
employing sensor fusion,
a networked topology and
Artificial Intelligence in
order to provide the Automotive Industry a complete solution
for eliminating tragic events. When embedded into a vehicle, this small, low-cost, artificial intelligence-powered device
enables a multichannel monitoring system that can analyze
movement in the vehicle, including minute movements such
as breathing or heartbeats. Should a potentially hazardous
condition arise while the vehicle is parked with an unattended
child or pet inside, or if an unauthorized intruder breaks into
the vehicle, the system will alert the vehicle’s owner via text or
telematics notification.

facebook.com/MobileElectronics â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 23

 hot sellers
Raven by Klashwerks Inc.
Raven is an all-in-one connected car
solution. With built-in cellular LTE,
cameras, sensors, displays and a high
performance six core processor that
gives users and their vehicles new
capabilities. Features include cabin
and road-facing cameras, that monitor activity in and around the vehicle
day or night, a six core processor that
handles real-time data efficiently, an
always-active LTE cellular connection
and use of telematics through the
vehicle’s OBDII port. The device is
compatible with smartphones via the
Raven app.

MAT - Magnetic Assisted Tap by
SITAEL S.p.A.
The MAT (Magnetic Assisted Tap) docking station
with handlebar remote control and smart lock for
e-bikes, connects the most used e-bike systems and
smartphones wirelessly. With its magnetic technology, it provides total control of the vehicle in one
single gesture, using the smartphone both as bike
key and display. It is also combined with a handlebar remote control for safely managing assist
levels, e-bell and app screens, and a smart lock that
recognizes the user app, disables the anti-theft and
unlocks the e-bike rear wheel.

InnovizPro High Definition Solid State LiDAR
Innoviz Technologies is a leading provider of cutting-edge
LiDAR remote sensing solutions to enable the mass
commercialization of Autonomous Vehicles. The InnovizPro™ delivers high angular resolution at a high frame
rate for high quality scanning performance. Highly resilient to sunlight and all weather conditions, InnovizPro’s
advanced solid-state technology ensures high durability
and long life expectancy. The product will be commercially deployed in Q1 2018.

24 Mobile Electronics January 2018

AWR mmWave Radar Sensors by Texas
Instruments
These innovative radar sensors are used for analyzing dynamic
operating conditions. Features include less than 5 cm resolution accuracy, range detection to hundreds of meters and
velocity of up to 300Km/h and the ability to detect changing
operating conditions and adapt to dynamic driving scenarios on the fly. TI’s AWR family of mmWave sensors enables
automotive applications ranging from proximity sensing,
ultra-short and short range to front long range radar.

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facebook.com/MobileElectronics
25
www.InstallerNet.com
• 800-444-1644

real world retail

Anything
Goes
Main Street Stereo maximizes profits by offering a
vast number of product categories and by saying yes
to ever opportunity that comes through the door,
finding a way to make it all work.
WORDS BY TED GOSLIN

26â&#x20AC;&#x201A; Mobile Electronics January 2018

Anything Goes

J

im Carrey once starred in a
movie called “Yes Man.” The
film followed a bank clerk who
found that he was missing
out on life by saying no to everything. After being dragged by a friend
to attend a seminar, Carrey started
saying yes to every opportunity. While
hilarity ensued for the sake of comedy,
his character’s life changed for the
better, resulting in his meeting a new
love, learning new skills and getting a
big raise at work.
For Main Street Stereo, success
came in a similar way thanks to
the company’s slogan, “Yes We Do!”
which tells customers that any and
all service requests are welcome.
The store, located in Sayville, N.Y., is
comprised of five full-time employees and one part-timer. Service
offerings include car audio, truck
accessories, window tinting, marine
and power sports offerings, rims and
tires, remote starters, alarms and
selling LED lights wholesale to other
companies.
On its way to becoming one of the
hottest aftermarket retailers on the
East Coast, Main Street Stereo began
its journey to dominance in 1974.
Having originally opened on Main
Street, the shop moved to Sunrise
Highway and eventually became a
household name in that area. By 2005,
a former employee of tech giant LG,
who had an engineering background,
was looking to get into 12-volt. He’d
always loved car audio and electronics. Soon enough, Soo Choi bought the
company and the building, then began
a renovation.
That same year, General Manager
Steve Salvio was hired to run the daily
operations. His journey to the company
began with a love of both music and
cars. “I started building cars with my
friends in high school. Through that, I
was in bands as a musician. I’ve got a
love for car audio with customization
and the audio with my musical background,” Salvio said. “I bounced around
in a couple jobs in college. I worked
for American Racing for six years then
rep’d for a couple of wheel companies
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 27

real world retail

FAST FACTS
MAIN STREET STEREO
mainststereo.com

KEY STAFF
Soo B. Choi - Owner

Steve Salvio - General Manager

Number of Stores: 1
Address: 5520 Sunrise Hwy, Sayville, NY 11782

James B. Geddes - Sales Manager

Facility Square Footage: 5,000

Garrett Bergersen - Senior Technician

Store Type: Boutique

Thomas A. Little - Technician

Number of Employees: 6
for the next four to five years, worked
for another stereo shop for a couple
years and ended up here. It’s all for my
love of custom vehicles.”
To round out the management
team, sales manager James Geddes
was hired in 2011. While Steve
handles rims and tire sales, James
handles general sales of everything
else in the store.
“I’ve been in mobile electronics
since 1996,” he said. “I found out
about vehicle possibilities when I
bought my first car. I decided it was
what I wanted to do.”
Thanks to this dream team of auto
lovers, the store developed a reputation for selling everything under the

28 Mobile Electronics January 2018

sun and knowing how to sell different
categories as well as properly install
every category they have.

Natural Progress
Selling a diverse product offering requires great knowledge, skill,
proper tooling and facilities, which
the company has in spades. The
two-story building boasts a 4,000
square foot installation bay, which
is split into three sections: a wood
shop, a show room with product
displays for each category sold, two
stock rooms upstairs with an office
and second showroom that features
even more product displays.
Among the myriad displays are

the LED lights that the company
sells wholesale. The lighting business was established thanks to
Choi’s previous relationships with
various Chinese factories. “As I go
to the SEMA show every year, that’s
how it developed naturally. The LED
wholesale business started with
everyone knowing we had them so
they started to contact us,” Choi
said. “Three years ago, everyone
was struggling with HID headlights,
which were notorious for returns.
We’re educating a lot of stores on
how to sell LEDs. It happened
gradually. We sell to local shops,
some dealerships and have a plan
for more serious business on the

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facebook.com/MobileElectronics â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 29

real world retail

The ONLY National Gathering Dedicate
Experience.

Learn.

Here’s your chance to get hands-on with the newest gear
of 2018! Talk directly with your vendors, ask questions and
even give your opinions on features and applications. Walk
the expansive show floor to discover new product lines and
tools. Plus, check out high-end installs and get tips from
the fabricators and professionals who put them together.

Expand your knowledge and expertise with over 24 classes
designed to improve your skills and professionalism! Taught
by technical experts, store owners and service providers
from your industry, each class focuses on real-life issues
you face every day and provides time-saving solutions that
you can take back to your store and implement immediately.

There’s no better learning environment than being among
hundreds of your peers! In addition to attending classes and
working with vendors, you have the unique opportunity to
get insights from—and share knowledge with—like-minded
professionals. Discover strategies they’ve had success
with that may work for you, and share a few of your own!

In addition to the exhibit floor, spend focused time with your
select vendors in an intimate classroom setting. Get detailed
training on new products, learn unique features and get tips on
selling strategies that will improve sell-through and profitability.
Get answers to all your questions about new products in one
place, without having to wait on hold for customer service.

Workshops
Owner and Manager Track (Continued)
10 Ways Independent Dealers Can Take Advantage of the
Evolving Retail World and Compete with Amazon
Conflict Resolution: Dealing with Difficult People &
Profitability
Building Confidence during the sales process
Sales and Marketing Track
Leadership in Sales: Building the Best Customer Relationship
Marketing Types: Finding Your Next Best Customer
To the Point: What is Important to Your Customer
Room for Growth: Emulating Successful Retail Models
The 12 Keys of Sustainable Selling:
The Four Rules
The Four Modes
The Four Steps of the Sale
Bidding and Building a Profitable Sales Ticket
Retailer Types: From Single Store to Large Chain

Anything Goes
The company sells a wide range of
products and services outside the
normal scope of 12-volt, including
truck accessories, wheels and tires
and wholesale LED lighting.

The company maintains a solid customer base through its two biggest
strengths: customer service and
presentation.

wholesale side of LED.”
Maintaining that organic approach
to business is a big part of the company identity that has allowed it
to grow over the years. That same
approach is used during customer
interactions to ease them into transactions without seeming pushy. “The
most important thing is to immediately break that barrier between
salesman and customer and be as
inviting as possible. We use quick
greetings with no closed-ended questions,” Geddes explained. “Customers
are invited to look around the store.
We don’t want it to look like a warehouse where we’re looking to move
boxes. We want it to have a homey

atmosphere, very warm.”
Tours of the facility are given upon
request. Vehicles that relate to the job
in question are shown to customers
to highlight that style of work, when
possible. “We’ll show systems that
we’ve done, showing photos all the
time. During installation they can’t
hang out in the bay. We show them the
clean shop and they’re impressed by
the size,” Geddes added. “We encourage dropping off to manage the shop
correctly. If the customer is not able to
make that work, we have waiting areas
in both parts of the store. We offer
rides as well.”
One of the company’s biggest
beliefs is that the shop is a reflection

of the work performed. For this
reason, the installation bay is cleaned
before and after every installation.
“There’s a tray for every screw and a
place for panels to go. Attention to
detail before and after installation is
very important and a big strength in
our shop,” Geddes said. “Our installers are very aware of issues with the
vehicle when it comes in. We like
the factory look. Instead of electrical tape, we use TESA tape. It costs
a little more but the look helps with
wire layout.”
All vehicles are inspected before and
after installation to take note of any
vehicle damage, possible upgrades and
to check the battery. Once the job is
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 33

real world retail

Plugged In
“What’s worked well for us marketing-wise has been our
website and social media. We have consistent posts of
customer installations, announcements of new technologies, up-to-date online business listings, Google
Adwords, Yelp and Yellow Pages advertising. Our marketing tag line has been ‘Internet Price, Real Service!’
“Initial goals of the plan were to reach both existing and
new customers through the most current media platforms available. We had a strategic discussion with third

party search engine providers about target location
and demographic, plus having a friendly but accurate
description online and in social media (website, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) for our many friends and
followers.
“The major components of our plan were to have
fun, post current and consistent content on social
media, provide customer follow-ups, request
feedback on Google and respond to all feedback
(positive or negative). The main issues we encountered were a delay in obtaining premium search
engine positioning and trying to remove or overshadow any negative posts or feedback. The
negatives were handled by making requests to
the search engine providers to have the content
removed, by responding honestly to the feedback,
or by just having enough positive feedback to push
back the negative.
“To meet our goals we ask all our clients how they
heard about Main Street Stereo and can monitor
the reactions to our online content so it is easy to
see the effectiveness of this marketing campaign.
However, in the constant search for new business,
the goal is always more and always better. It’s a hard
goal to achieve because there is always more and it
can always be better!”

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34 Mobile Electronics January 2018

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800-489-2300

Anything Goes
complete, every customer receives a
call or email the following week. “Our
focus is not only making sure the customer is happy when they’re here, but
keeping them happy after they leave,”
Geddes added.

Homegrown
To handle the wide array of products and services, the store has two
sales staff and three installers, two
full-time and one part-time. But finding staff as the store has grown has
been a challenge due to the shortage
of qualified, trained people in the
industry.
“Because we are in an industry
that’s not growing a lot, we don’t
have good installers around much,
so that’s always an issue. There was
a natural progression from the 1970s
to 1980s; car electronics was big in
Manhattan. This was back when you
could make $1,000 to $1500 per car
with a line out the door. Because of
this popularity, installers left, turned

the key and now they had a business,” Geddes said. “On Long Island,
this business in general has a lot to
do with why the talent left. When
the business struggled, they didn’t
know how to manage their business.
If they were salesmen, they would let
go of their key salesman. You would
have guys working hands-on who
lost the ability to run the business.
Some of the talent that existed early
on in Long Island left and didn’t
come back. Good installers are hard
to find.”
Despite the regional struggles,
management has found enough
qualified staff to maintain proper
procedures and keep customers
coming back. The installation techs
were all found through either wordof-mouth or being former customers
themselves. The average tenure of
staff is five years, according to Choi.
Retention incentives include paid
vacation, medical insurance, monthly
spiffs on specific inventory items,

plus quarterly and annual bonuses
based on sales performance.
New employees are on-boarded
using a combination of dense
employee manuals full of procedures
and shadowing veteran staff. While
there is no formal continuous training, the whole staff attends as many
trainings as possible from vendors
who come to town. “We’re constantly
trying to make each other better
throughout the day,” Geddes added.
Employees are rotated out to different industry events like SEMA and
KnowledgeFest for further training
throughout the year.
To keep spirits up during busy
periods, management treats staff to
dinners and drinks periodically. They
also treat them to Christmas dinner
and Saturday lunches. “We’re fun and
serious when we have to be serious.
Nobody wants to come to a job where
they’re miserable and want to leave,”
Geddes said. “We keep it fun and
friendly to a certain extent. We create

facebook.com/MobileElectronics 35

real world retail

Reciprocation Denied
“An unsuccessful marketing campaign we did was
our customer appreciation day. The initial goals
were to thank our loyal customers for all their support over the years. We sent out mailers, ran a radio
ad, arranged for food and entertainment and spread
word of mouth from within the store.
“The idea was to show new product and technology

a fun atmosphere. Our customers feel
it too. We are all smiles and create a
good rapport with customers.”

Talking Points
Marketing strategies vary with
every company, usually dancing
between a mix of advertising and
word-of-mouth. For Main Street
Stereo, only about two to three
percent of the budget goes toward
advertising, with the majority of its
efforts centered on digital promotions. The company advertises using
Facebook and Google Adwords, while
targeting new customers with Groupon promotions and posting pictures
with hash tags on Instagram.

36 Mobile Electronics January 2018

displays while offering food, music via a live DJ and
sale merchandise. But customer attendance was
poor. Not enough people were reached. Instead of a
day customer appreciation sale, it will be changed to
a three-day weekend sale, centered around a holiday weekend, with email blasts and flyers, which are
critical.”

“Everything we do is focused on
education. If we do an install, we
are looking to describe the customer experience. Everyone can
do a photo,” Geddes said. “We’re
looking to solve a customer’s problem. That’s how we address Google,
with customer reviews and keyword
advertising to reach our customers
in search.”
All marketing work is managed
in-house, except the website, which
is outsourced. “Our website has a
couple of products at sale prices. It
encourages them to input contact
information, which gets an immediate call the next day,” Geddes said.
“We just want to get them into the

store. That’s when they can get the
best experience.”
The staff also attend a local car meet,
called “Monday Night Takeover,” during
the summer months. It’s one of the
largest events of its kind, according to
Salvio, with between 3,000 and 5,000
cars per night in attendance. The meet
is convenient since it takes place only
10 minutes from the store.

Finest Hour
What Choi, Geddes and Salvio
are proudest of these days is the
consistency they’ve managed to produce with regard to their product
and service quality. “Soo has had a
vision from the second he took over

Anything Goes
The facility is located in a busy
part of town, with about 80,000
vehicles passing by per day and 25
to 50 people passing on foot.

Long-time
Partners
“One of our key vendors is Kenwood (20 years). We have a very
solid relationship with the current
reps. The top selling products are the
double-DIN multimedia head units.
Customers like the quality, reputation, functionality, ease of use and
the warranty.
“The newest product we are excited
about is the multimedia head unit
with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto.
It has a capacitive touchscreen and
front camera/DVR capability.
“Kenwood supports us as a retailer
by providing discounts, co-op funding, literature and POP, sales rewards
programs, fast tech support and
prompt attention for warranty situations and defective merchandise.”

To ensure a minimum of slow periods,
the company credo is “Yes We Do!”
which means no customers are
turned away, even if that means work
is outsourced occasionally.

here. As hard as it’s been with stores
closing every year around here, if
you don’t have a plan, you can have
big ups and downs,” Geddes said.
One such down happened in 2012.
Two years after Hurricane Sandy
destroyed parts of Long Island, and
after a store renovation, a fire nearly
took out the store, burning out a
30-year-old neon sign during the blaze.
Luckily, the store survived, thanks to
an off-duty fireman who happened to be
across the street when it happened.
“The fireman said we were about
two to three minutes from it really
catching to the rest of the building.
Electronics and water don’t mix,”
Geddes said. “The off-duty fireman

who helped put it out was also a
customer. The next thing we knew,
I was selling to firemen while they
congregated outside the building.”
Aside from being popular with local
firefighters, the store has garnered
attention from environmentalists for
having solar panels on the roof. “It’s
environmentally friendly. We don’t do
oil any more. It’s all electric heating and
A/C,” Choi said. “We’re a pretty green
business. It’s a big investment but it’s
worthwhile. It helps the store’s image.”
Choi believes retailers looking
to stay in business as long as Main
Street Stereo should be mindful of
presentation, especially with regard
to the showroom experience. “The

interactions and displays need to
reach the customer at an emotional
level,” Choi said. “We’re in a tough
business, dealing with complex
items. Many shoppers need help.
That’s all blended into the showroom experience.”
“As many things that can go right
during a sale, the one thing that’s not
right is what they remember,” Geddes
added. “We try to put out fires as they
arrive. We plant the seed with the customer so the last thing they remember
is positive. Retailers should exhibit
patience so the customers never know
what’s going on behind the scenes. Treat
every customer like they’re your only
customer and your last customer.”
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 37

ď&#x192;Ž The Support Team

A Class Act

With its many programs, accommodating academic schedule and
on-campus housing, the Installer Institute is a smart investment
for schooling.
Back in 1992, The Cartoon Network started broadcasting, the Mall
of America opened and airline TWA
declared bankruptcy. There was
no Facebook, Twitter, or any social
media and certainly no smartphones
for installers to be tinkering with
inside vehicles.
Even though it was a simpler time,
it had become more imperative for
installers to ramp up their skills or
risk falling behind with advancing
automotive technology and potentially suffering professionally because
of that. The only issue was that they

38â&#x20AC;&#x201A; Mobile Electronics January 2018

had nowhere to go for any formal
type of training.
Bill Jones, owner of Metra Electronics, took up the reins and
pioneered the Installer Institute, a
technical training facility based in
Holly Hill, Fla. The synergy made
perfect sense with Metra being an
aftermarket car audio installation
accessories company.
Today the Installer Institute is a
10,000 square-foot training facility
with comprehensive programs yearround and on-campus housing. More
than 5,000 students have graduated

from the school.
In 2016, the Installer Institute
reached a milestone with its accreditation by the Accrediting Council for
Continuing Education and Training
(ACCET). The school has also branched
out from vehicle training and now
includes home theater installations and
marine applications in its curriculum.
Most importantly, the school continues to adapt every year to keep in
step with the always-evolving aftermarket automotive industry, according
to Monica Anderson, director of the
Installer Institute.

“Our comprehensive mobile electronics training program covers more
than just fabrication,” Anderson
said. “We teach students advanced
installations, OEM integrations,
leather interior installations, welding, window tinting, security systems,
remote start, home automation
and control, structured wiring and
more. These topics are taught in
workshops where students receive
hands-on training, and our curriculum isn’t offered anywhere else.”
For 2018, the Institute has implemented a major change by making sure

there is more time for real-world experiences to complement class training.
“We started with a four-week
course. We now offer two different
six-week courses, a 12-week program
and a 26-week comprehensive program, along with offering exams for
the MESA and MECP certifications,”
Anderson said.

Setting Course
The program schedule for this year is
more installer friendly than in the past,
but that has meant a few modifications.
The class day has been shortened to

allow students additional time after
class for internships or part-time jobs.
In turn, the length of the programs
has been extended. The total amount
of instructional hours still remains the
same, but now the five-week courses
run six weeks long, and the 23-week
comprehensive installations course—
which equates to 900 hours—is now 26
weeks long.
The Basic Installations Program is
being offered at three different times
throughout this year: February 12
to March 23, May 14 to June 25 and
August 16 to September 27.
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 39

 The Support Team

The school’s facilities are expansive, boasting over 10,000 square
feet, including classrooms, installation bays for hands-on training,
and test equipment for students
to use throughout their training.

40 Mobile Electronics January 2018

Get Connected
Installerinstitute.co
1-800-354-6782

This introductory course focuses
on basic electrical knowledge, car
audio enclosure design, proper
installation techniques, integration of advanced security products
(like GPS navigation and remote
starters) and more complex installation skills that are required to
obtain the Audio System Installer
and Security Systems Installer
certifications.
The Advanced Installations
course, also six weeks, can be combined with the Basic course or
enrolled in separately for more
experienced students. This program
provides instruction on leather interior installation, custom fabrication
and fiberglass, interior panel design
and construction, and custom
painting and metal work. It also
introduces students to the basics of
home audio installation. Program
dates are March 26 to May 4, June
26 to August 8, or September 28
to November 8, 2018. This course
offers classroom instruction in addition to hands-on training, allowing
each student to build their own
pre-designed projects.
The more intensive 26-week Comprehensive Installations course
includes all of the classes offered in
each of the two six-week programs,

@InstallerInst

facebook.com/
Installer-Institute

but adds hands-on workshops where
students can develop their skills, learn
to effectively market themselves to
further their career, and learn the process for starting and operating a small
business. There are two different
start dates for this course. The earliest opportunity is January 22, 2018.
Completion date is August 3, 2018.
The course will be offered a second
time on August 20, 2018 and will run
through March 15, 2019.
Not only do students enrolled
in this expanded program learn
all of the skills covered during the
school’s six-week Basic and Advanced
Installations courses, but they also
have the opportunity to participate in workshops to improve job
skills, as well as learn the process of
owning a business as an installation
professional. MESA and MECP certifications are also offered through the
school’s programs.

Welcome Home

Once students enroll at the Institute, it’s important that they can
focus on completing their studies
to the best of their abilities. Where
a student lives can have a huge
impact, which is why the Installer
Institute offers student housing—
fully furnished apartment style

youtube.com/
watch?v=kghTmNZ61ME

villas—conveniently located on
campus.
The Installer Institute housing
facility is located directly behind the
school making it a 50-yard walk to
class each day. Providing both the
education and safety of its students is
a top priority at Installer Institute.
Once off campus, students are
right next to Daytona Beach. Daytona
is home of the Spring Break Nationals car audio competition, the famous
Daytona 500 NASCAR race, IASCA
and Bike Week/Biketoberfest.

Open Arms
Students at the Installer Institute come from all over—not just
the Florida area. Some have recently
graduated high school, others are
coming out of the military, and still
others are from shops that want to
acquire new skills.
The Institute has admissions representatives who can assist with a
transition from the armed forces to a
career as a skilled mobile electronics
installer. Veterans receive a 10 percent discount on their tuition.
Financing is also available for just
about everyone. There are options
that offer low interest rates, low
monthly payments, and even an
option for as low as $800 down.

Certifiable
The Installer’s Institute
curriculum is certified
by the following
organizations:

Testing
1, 2, 3
According to the website, exams from
organizations like MESA (Mobile Electronics Specialists of America) and
MECP (Mobile Electronics Certified
Professionals) are offered at Installer
Institute, along with courses on a variety
of 12-volt topics, as listed below:

MESA EXAMS OFFERED AT
INSTALLER INSTITUTE:
Installation Knowledge Exam (IKE)
- This exam covers five fundamental areas of mobile electronics
installation. Students take the exam
during the first week of class. The
Installation Knowledge Exam is
a prerequisite to the other MESA
exams.
Audio System Certification (ASC)
- This exam covers the day to
day installation skill that an
installer will need to become a
valued asset to an installation
retail shop. Students take this
exam at the end of the 5th week
of class.

42 Mobile Electronics January 2018

Security System Certification (SSC) This exam covers the area of vehicle
security and remote starters, this is a
specific talent and the exam gives the
student the skills to be profitable in
the installation bays.

MECP EXAMS OFFERED AT
INSTALLER INSTITUTE:
Basic Installation Technician This certification tests the student’s knowledge on a broad
range of apprentice-level mobile
electronics topics. This exam
requires less than 1 year experience and the certification is valid
for 2 years.
Advanced Installation Technician This certification is designed for
installation technicians who have

a comprehensive understanding of
vehicle electronics and practical
applications. This exam requires 1
year experience and the certification
is valid for 4 years.
Master Installation Technician This certification is the highest level
of achievement. Individuals who
achieve this certification are considered leaders in the industry. This
exam requires 3 years hands-on
experience in installation and an
Advanced Installation Technician certification. This certification is valid
for 4 years.
Mobile Product Specialist This exam is designed for sales
representatives and offers in-depth
knowledge into technology, products, and system design. The
certification is valid for 4 years.

“Our comprehensive and mobile electronics training programs covers more than just fabrication.
We teach students advanced installations, OEM
integrations, leather interior installations, welding, window tinting, security systems, remote
start, home automation and control, structured
wiring and more.”
Monica Anderson, School Director, The Installer Institute
Graduate Alex Sinclair, a custom
fabricator who works at West Coast
Customs in Corona, Calif., was able
to find a meaningful direction and
important skills for his career when
he attended the school.
“I started as a father at an early
age and had to get a job,” Sinclair
said. “I took anything out there. I
started doing roofing. A year later,
I found it’s not for me.” He was a
waiter, a cook, everything he could
think of to earn a living. Nothing clicked and he was completely
frustrated.
“I needed to find something I
enjoyed doing,” he said. “My mom
noticed my frustration and asked me
what was wrong. I told her, ‘I hate
bouncing from job to job to job. I’ve
got to start over. I need to do something I enjoy doing.’ So she said,
‘Why don’t you do something with
cars? The first thing you do when
you come home from work is go to
work on cars. Why don’t you take
that seriously and go to school for it.’
I never thought that could be something I could have a future in.”
Sinclair started researching
options, but couldn’t find anything
in the way of schooling. “I could not
find anything in the area where I
could go to school,” he said. “I used
to read PAS Magazine. At the end
of the magazine I saw a little article
for Installer’s Institute. I thought,
‘I’m going to give it a try.’ My mom
was supporting me a lot at that time.
So I went to Florida to the Installer
Institute. I learned everything from

wiring to enclosures. I started to
learn the process of it. The more I
learned, the more interested I got.
I took a second course. After that I
started pushing myself to become
better and better and better. After
that I started getting better jobs and
raises. Thank you, Installer Institute.
If it wasn’t for you guys, I wouldn’t
be who I am right now.”
The Institute also offers continuing education courses including Intro
to Formal Installations, Enclosure
Design and Construction, Beyond
Basic Installation, Advanced Mobile
Security and Navigation, Complex
Installations, Leather Interior Installation and Advanced Fabrication.
After a student has gotten his
or her education, the Institute
offers guidance to getting that
first job.
Based on a student’s academic
performance and desire to work
in the mobile electronics industry, the opportunities are out
there. The Installer Institute is a
valuable resource for many shop
owners, managers and manufacturers who are always looking for
qualified technicians.
Additionally, each graduating class spends a day developing
résumé and learning the skills
needed for a successful interview. Students have a one-on-one
mock interview session with their
instructor in which they are evaluated on how well they present
themselves to a potential employer.
The graduates are also advised

about the alumni dashboard area
of the Installer Institute website
where an alumni account is created and résumé posted. At any
time after graduation, they can
view available jobs from employers
across the country.
“It’s a win-win because it helps
people find jobs a lot faster,” Anderson said. “And it has helped the
industry as a whole. The idea behind
it is that there’s a huge need for
skilled installers.”

Knowing All
A key effort for the Institute going
forward is to continue its efforts
reaching out to 12-volt installers and
making sure they know this educational opportunity exists.
“We’re reaching potential students
on social media and through grassroots marketing, and by going to all
the automotive shows like SEMA,
PRI, CES and Spring Break Nationals,” Anderson said. “We also visit
high schools to introduce students
to the options available in 12-volt
careers.”
The Institute also looks to industry publications to continue to
spread the word about its career
dashboard and continuing education courses. “As automotive
technology changes, we want installers to invest in their education to
help further their careers,” Anderson said. “We can’t stress enough
how important it is to keep training
and expanding your skillset, because
knowledge is power.”
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 43

 strategy & tactics

12-volt retail heavyweights like Al & Ed’s Autosound and 806
Autoworks discuss strategies they use to improve store and
staff performance to prep for the year ahead.

WORDS BY ROSA SOPHIA

1: Evaluating Daily, Monthly, Yearly

In order to know where you’re going,
it’s important to know where you’ve
been. With the 2018 now upon us, it’s
retails have already begun setting their
plans in motion for the year ahead.
John Haynes is general manager
of car audio franchise giant, Al &
Ed’s Autosound in Los Angeles, Calif.
“Any company not tracking their sales
and looking at past and present and
breaking things down to see where
it can be improved … that becomes
luck,” Haynes warned. And luck, while
it might work for a little while, isn’t
guaranteed.
Here are five key factors that business owners can focus on to help them
improve store and staff performance
from year to year:

Rommel Miranda of Car Audio, Radio,
& Security in Charleston, S.C. continuously tracks and analyzes all aspects of
his business from marketing to sales. “I
track everything through QuickBooks,
on my point of sale system,” he said.
“I always look every day to see how
we’re doing versus last year. Every year
we’ve come up 10 to 15 percent overall.
I always look at every day, month and
year, always analyzing the different factors. I know what the goal is for that day
and I try to exceed that.”
Haynes added that he also looks at
industry trends. “We track our sales
every day. We compare that against the
prior year to see how we’re doing in
terms of sales performance,” he said.
“I can tell this year to last year exactly
what’s going on in all areas. If you’re

44 Mobile Electronics January 2018

improving in categories A, C and F, but
B, D and E are down, look and see how
we attack those categories. Maybe we get
out of those categories. Where were you,
where are you, what can you do to effect
change? One of our strengths is that we
can move quickly. We make a decision
and go.”
For Bryan Turvaville, owner of 806
Autoworks in Amarillo, Texas, building
his new business relies on other tools
for measurement. “Since we just hit our
one year mark, I don’t have anything to
measure my success against on a year
to year basis,” he said. “I do, however,
utilize some very nice tools provided
to our industry. TSS is my point of sale
system and it helps me keep track of
my inventory and invoicing everything
out. I recently purchased QuickBooks
and that will be my main accounting

LEVEL UP!
software, but the one thing that helps
me track progress the best is a service
provided by Avidworx. Their BusinessWorx system helps me track daily goals,
as well as monthly goals. It provides me
very nice tools to measure my success,
and as I grow, I will be able to compare
year to year with it.”
“KnowledgeFest opened my eyes
this year to a world of things I was
doing wrong and we are actively
learning and fixing processes as we
go,” Turvaville said. “Budgeting and
Accounting were two major items
that we have been working on since
August. Right now I have no procedure or system to evaluate my
accounting, but that is changing with
the addition of QuickBooks. We hope
that it will allow us to create the systems we need to get on track with
our accounting. I know our CPA will
appreciate it.”

2: Examining Trends
Haynes looks at the business’s categories and how they’re doing compared to
trends in the industry. When he was still
working at the store-level earlier in his
career, Haynes recalled running ads and
the company would want to know how
many of each radio or speaker sets were
sold. “Stores would send that in to the
corporate office and they would tally it
and say, ‘Wow, that was a good sale, we
sold X amount.’ That hasn’t worked in a
long time.”
“We do branding advertising and
not so much call-to-action advertising. We’re not counting the radios
anymore. Instead, it’s, ‘Is our business
trending upward? Are we developing categories?’” Al & Ed’s uses email
blasts, social media marketing, website
ads, Yelp and more. Examining trends,
according to Haynes, is the best way
to measure progress because it can be
difficult to track the success of a social
media marketing campaign or other
advertising campaign.
Miranda focuses mostly on social
media campaigns. “We are on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn,
Google Plus—you name it, we are out
there,” he said.

Keeping tabs on the success of social media campaigns to help promote
events like the car show seen here are part of the strategy for companies
like Al & Ed’s Autosound.
“We can tell how many views things
have had,” Haynes added. “We can tell
how many shares or followers [there
are]. We know this translates to sales
because our company is bucking the
trend compared to the industry on
average, but I would have a hard time
telling why. That’s the frustrating part
about marketing today. You go out with
your best efforts and you can’t track one
particular campaign to find out why
something happened.”
However, by looking at numbers and
industry trends, Haynes can better measure progress. “When I look at those
numbers, if the industry is down 10 percent and we’re up 10 percent, then we’re
up 20 percent roughly,” he said.
“That’s the only metrics I can really use.”
It’s not enough to say that a business
is doing well. Such a statement has to
translate into numbers, and this involves
looking at a business’s trends in comparison with the industry as a whole. “It’s
a team effort for marketing campaigns,”
Haynes said, adding that Al & Ed’s has
a social media marketing manager who
also coordinates events. “We have an
advertising committee of four people
who meet every week.” This gives them a
chance to discuss marketing campaigns
and share ideas or concerns. “We have
these discussions internally and that
guides the marketing.”

3: Looking Your Best
Appearance is essential to a business’s
image, especially for 806 Autoworks,
which made it a huge focus recently.
“Until November 17th, I had no working displays in my store,” Turvaville said.
“Everything was sold by word of mouth
and showing pictures. Customers had
to trust me in the fact that I was giving
them great sounding equipment. That
has changed. We have built a display
that showcases several radios we offer
and allows customers to hear the speakers before they buy them. Our display
is small and is meant to drive customer
engagement and add that element we
were missing: sound.” The layout of the
showroom has been completely redesigned as well.
Miranda stated that he hopes to move
to a larger location sometime in the
future, giving the business a chance to
update its appearance. “[We have made]
no changes recently,” he said of the
appearance of Car Audio, Radio, & Security. “I think it always can be better.”
First impressions tend to make a huge
difference. “Any owner of a single store
or company needs to have an understanding of what consumers are looking
for in terms of a retailer, a buying and
purchasing experience,” Haynes said,
adding that this includes simple factors
such as cleanliness of the store. “Doesn’t
facebook.com/MobileElectronics 45

 strategy & tactics

Posting shots on social media that showcase the cleanliness of a store
can greatly increase its notoriety to customers, as seen here with a shot
of Rommel Miranda’s store, Car Audio, Radio, & Security.
matter what kind of store it is. If you’re
a retailer, you have to have a certain face
you put on for your customers. If you
understand that, you start setting standards of excellence.” Are the floors and
windows clean inside the store? Are the

46 Mobile Electronics January 2018

sidewalks clean? These items should be
part of a checklist, according to Haynes.
“You have to hold the employees to a
high standard, and let them know what
the standards are. With most businesses,
the fail starts at the top,” he said. “Set

high standards, communicate what they
are and coach employees on how to
achieve them. Always inspect, retrain
and then sometimes replace. And if you
do this as a philosophy, your store will
always look good, be functional, safe
and legal. You have to define this and
execute the standards. Employees have
to be held to the standards.”
If the shop looks messy, as if it doesn’t
function well and has items stacked
everywhere, “customers might still leave
their car there, but it won’t be as easy to
sell products,” Haynes said.
“We have a guy who sweeps the floor.
I’m not afraid to pick the broom up
myself. We empty trashcans, we mop the
entrance to our building,” Haynes added.
“When we open up at nine and people
start coming in—we want the place to
look professional.”

4: Evaluating Staff
Staff evaluations are an ongoing process, according to Haynes. “When you
see something that’s not right, you have
to immediately correct and coach,” he
said. “Does the person continue to make
the same mistake? Then it’s ongoing.
Am I starting to see a pattern with this
employee? I evaluate whether someone
is coachable or even wants to do it. You
say, ‘We have a policy, you’re not doing
it, we’ve talked about it and I want
you to do tell me if you’re capable. Do
you not know how, do you need help,
or do you just not care?’ Get feedback.
Decide at that point if this is someone
who is workable into a team, or do I
cut my losses? If they aren’t going to
be a long-term success, I start doing
corrective write-ups, documenting the
conversation, and when I have enough I
terminate. Getting mad at people when
they don’t know what they’re supposed
to do is not good business.
Car Audio, Radio, & Security has five
employees, including Miranda. The
majority are commission-based employees. “My daughter works here, too, but
I pay her hourly,” Miranda said. He
added that he does one-on-one meetings with employees about every other
month. “We talk. If there’s something
I’m lacking here at the shop, or if it’s,

LEVEL UP!
‘You need to improve’ [on this or that]
or, ‘You need to speed up,’ or ‘You’re
doing a good job,’ I talk to each individual person.”
Employees need to know the standards before they can carry them out.
“Make sure they know what they need to
do first. Do it in a nice way. Maybe they
need to understand why,” Haynes said.
“If it’s an owner or manager, it comes
to developing people. Are you willing
to give up the reins a little bit? Teach
them. If I can train someone to take
my job or move out of my company to
something better, then I think we as a
company have done a good job. When
an employee moves up to work as a
manufacturer’s rep, even though we lost
the employee I look at it as a positive.
We changed a life.”

Bryan Turvaville makes sure to
publicly thank his customers,
including Mr. Darby, who was his
first customer after opening 806
Autoworks.

5: Customer Care
To evaluate the effectiveness of
his store’s marketing, Turvaville asks
his customers how they found 806
Autoworks. “You never know unless you

ask. I only market in a couple of places
and it is all online,” he said. “Social
media and Google are the extent of my
marketing, so when I’m with a customer, I ask them how they found us. It’s
allowed me to focus on growing those
marketing tools.”
“Every vehicle gets a check in/out
sheet,” Turvaville added. “We go over
every inch of the vehicle, making sure
that we hold to the highest standards.
When I do hire an installer, they will
be trained in what is expected and will
also be expected to get and maintain an
MECP Certification status.”
Haynes noted that a survey was
commissioned years back by manufacturers. “They discovered only about
five percent of consumers knew you
could make changes to your car. Of the
people who did know, almost 50 percent had had a bad experience,” Haynes
said. “Understand what the standards
should be, set, communicate and
enforce them. As long as it keeps working, keep doing it.”

facebook.com/MobileElectronics 47

 tech today

The Jeep and the iPad

Tech Today returns to its fabrication roots with a discussion on fabrication
techniques by Josh Gobble, owner of Dynamic Audio Design.
WORDS BY JOSH GOBBLE

Earlier this Summer I received an
inquiry from a client who was interested
in integrating an iPad mini into his Jeep
Wrangler. He did a lot of research as to
what method of mounting would work
best for him. He couldn’t decide on an
existing mount available for purchase.
Off-roading is something he frequently
likes to do and most of the mounts on
the market now solely rely on magnets
to hold the tablet securely in place or are
just plain ugly.
He stumbled upon a video I made of
an iPad install I did a couple years ago,
and called me to see what I could come
up with. I was able to make a mount

48 Mobile Electronics January 2018

where the iPad housing opens and closes
to dock and remove the iPad without the
risk of riding over bumpy terrain and
losing it out of the window! I assured
him that those magnets are a great solution, but we both preferred a more permanent and secure mount.

Design Decisions
When the Jeep arrived in the shop
I noticed a couple issues. One, the
iPad would have to be slightly higher
than the actual trim bezel as it
comes OEM, otherwise serious modification would have to be done to
move the climate controls to a lower
position, and ultimately rebuild the
entire bezel.

Secondly, I wanted to be able to change
the radio to aftermarket with a direct
USB connection for charging and audio
playback. That meant that the radio
would need to be recessed further back
in the dash so the new mount would fit
flush for a proper finish that didn’t look
like an add-on piece.
Since the iPad was going to protrude
above the top point of the dash, I didn’t
want to create a trim ring that was just
blended with the rest of the bezel that
sloped from the top of the dash to the top
of the trim ring of the mount. I thought
that creating a modern style look (similar to new Mercedes Benz instrument
displays) would be the way to go. The
interior of the Jeep is black with silver

The Jeep and the IPAD
painted accents on the vents. I figured I
could match the mount with the existing
color scheme to keep it looking factory
with an all black housing assembly with
the outer ring painted silver to match.

Mounting Possibilities
Once I figured out where the mount
needed to be seated for proper fitment,
it was time to make sure that it was
going to be feasible. I needed to take the
dash apart and make sure there would
be clearance for the new mount and the
head unit behind it.
Once the stock radio was removed I
was able to set the new head unit in place
to see how much room I would have. I
noticed right away that I needed more
depth in order for the mount to nestle
into the dash bezel. The back of the head
unit was hitting the ‘Y’ portion of the
vent duct that splits into the driver and
passenger vent.
It was fairly large in size with large
diameter ducting and I knew that there
would be plenty of room left, even if I
had to modify it slightly. I only needed to
gain half an inch or so.
Instead of cutting and trying to rework
the ducting, I chose to use a heat gun
to soften the plastic slightly. I pushed
a DIN-sized piece of wood into the soft
duct to make more space by stretching
the plastic back. I held it in place long
enough for the plastic to cool back down
and hold its new shape giving the new
head unit plenty of clearance while also
leaving enough of the vent intact so it
did not restrict the air flow substantially.
After testing it wasn’t even noticeable.

Finished assembly painted and ready to
be attached to the dash bezel.

Finished dash bezel with mount ready to
go back in the Jeep.

Constructing the Mount
After test-fitting the radio, it was
time to focus on the mount itself and
the materials it was to be constructed
with. In the past I have made parts
using ABS plastic for mounts, pockets,
switch panels, etc. However, I felt this
needed something even more durable
and less likely to soften and warp from
sun exposure. I chose 1/8-inch acrylic
for the all the housing parts, the trim
ring, and the new mount for the head
unit. I also used Methylene Chloride for
adhering each piece.

Shown in the closed position. Docking
cable and suede flocking also shown.

facebook.com/MobileElectronics 49

 tech today
I chose to use 1/8-inch material
because I knew that the mount needed
to be as low profile as possible and using
any thinner material may have been too
flimsy. My plan, like other installs I have
done, was also to add suede flocking
material to the inside of the slider to prevent any damage to the iPad when taking
in and out of the vehicle. The client noted
that he would be using a glass screen
protector so that was also taken into
consideration.
The first task was to take some measurements of the iPad itself. I used
masking tape around the iPad to make
sure there wouldn’t be any scuffs or
scratches throughout the process. Since
the iPad was to slide in from the side, I
knew I would need a slight gap around it
so it would slide freely from left to right
without catching or getting stuck and
having to use excessive force to take it in
and out.
At this point I didn’t know exactly
how big it needed to be so I just used an
oversized piece to get started. I attached
the iPad to a sheet of acrylic using double
sided template tape. I then used another
layer of acrylic on top of that. The
masking tape served a dual purpose as
well. It was also used to ensure that when
the flocking was added it wouldn’t make
the slider action too tight. I didn’t know
the exact thickness of the flocking when
it was applied so I made an educated
guess and used several layers of masking
tape around the iPad. It was approximately 1/16-inch in total.
After I made an iPad sandwich, I measured the space between the two layers
of acrylic, which would then become the
top, bottom, and left side of the slider.
The right side would then be left open
to pull the tablet in and out. Once I had
those strips cut I placed them around
the iPad and glued them in place using
the Methylene Chloride. It sets very fast
which is a bonus when it comes to efficiency. These strips would then become
the outer edges of the iPad mount, and
because they were only 1/8-inch in thickness, they maintained a very small profile, or footprint, around the iPad. But
instead of having squared corners, I overlapped the front and back pieces a little

50 Mobile Electronics January 2018

Sony head unit accessible behind iPad
mini.

Finished product shown in the open position. Tablet can slide out easily from here.

Finished product in the closed position.
No chance of losing a tablet while off-roading.

The Jeep and the IPAD
farther the edges so I could use a
radius template to round the corners. I
believe I used a 1/2-inch radius template.

Window for a Screen
After I had all the pieces cut it was
time to create the viewing window of the
tablet itself. This was done easily on the
router table. One benefit of using acrylic
is that is clear. When the pieces were
temporarily joined and the iPad was in
place, I was simply able to use template
tape and flat-edged templates to outline
the tablet screen size onto the acrylic and
then routed them on my router table. On
the backside, I used 1/4-inch acrylic and
made a DIN-sized sleeve where the head
unit would end up being attached to
using the ISO mounting style.
After test fitting in the vehicle, I was
able to determine where the head unit
face would align with iPad mount and
marked it down. I then used the sleeve
as a jig and routed the back panel of the
mount using a 1/4-inch flush trim bit.
At this point I was ready to glue all the
pieces together to get ready for the next
step, which was to make the trim ring/
housing for the iPad holder to fit in. After
all the pieces were adhered, front, back,
top, bottom, and left side all together,
and the corner radiusâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; routed, I had a
complete part that the iPad could slide
in and out of freely. I then used a drill bit
to ream the opening on the left side that
would allow for the docking cable to be
attached and accessible.

Bending the trim ring around the MDF.

You can see the 1/16-inch gap around the
holder inside the trim ring.

Housing Issues
Now it was time to make the trim ring.
I started off by laying the holder down
on a new sheet of acrylic as a base layer
that would become the back of the entire
assembly once completed. I had to figure
out a way to gap the holder from the trim
ring so it wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t rub at all. I ended up
template taping the holder to a piece of
MDF and used a panel resizer router bit
to offset the cut 1/16-inch to make the
MDF panel oversized a 1/16-inch larger
than the acrylic holder. That gave me the
perfect size to build the trim ring around.
I cut a long strip of acrylic 1-inch-wide to
start and long enough to heat and bend
all the way around the MDF jig.

Attaching the hinge mount.

facebook.com/MobileElectronics â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 51

ď&#x192;Ž tech today
I used more template tape all the way
around the MDF border, then starting at
the bottom of the perimeter, I attached
the 1-inch strip to the MDF. I made sure
that the strip was flush with the bottom
of the MDF. That way, once it was bent
into shape, it could be attached to the
backer plate of acrylic.
I then used my heat gun on medium/
high setting and started heating up the
acrylic strip where it needed to curve
around the jig. I waved the heat gun
back and forth to slowly make sure the
heat was penetrating the acrylic evenly
and not too fast. If you heat it up too
much it can bubble, warp really badly,
and ruin the piece.
Slowly and steadily I was able to make
the first bend around the jig. As I continued around the jig the template tape
would hold the acrylic to the MDF. There
may be a better alternative than standard
template tape, but this seemed to work
well enough without altering the spacing
substantially. Critical Application Tape
from 12vTools may be a better alternative
as it can withstand higher temps.
Once I bent the strip all the way
around the four corners I had to mate
the ends. I basically just aligned them
as close as possible, trimmed the excess,
then used the Methylene Chloride to fuse
the ends together by clamping from both
directions. After that was dry, I test fit
the two parts. But before I could attach
the trim ring to the backer plate, I used
the 1/4-inch sleeve again to route the
backer plate open for the head unit to be
accessible. I then attached the trim ring
to the backer plate.

The cabinet latch and hinge shown.Â The front of the latch is
magnetic and a neo magnet is attached behind the holder.

Notch shown in hinge point to allow free movement. It also
prevents the holder from rubbing the inside of the trim ring.

The Swivel Point
The next part was a little trickier, but I
thought of a pretty clever way to accomplish the task. With the iPad holder
and the trim ring completed I needed
to figure out a way that the iPad holder
could swivel open and closed without
rubbing or falling apart. With the thickness of the iPad and the acrylic holder
sitting inside a trim ring, a hinge at one
end would cause it to bind and rub on
the side that the tablet would slide into.
I then figured out if I moved the hinging
point about 1/3 of the way in from the left

52â&#x20AC;&#x201A; Mobile Electronics January 2018

Grafting the iPad assembly to the factory
dash bezel.

The Jeep and the IPAD

Suede flocking for a smooth home for the
iPad.

I could have full mobility. In other
words, just left of center, with the
opening at the right would be the best
hinging point. Also, with the hinging
point about a 1/2-inch out from behind
the backer I was able to move the holder
inside of the trim ring with as little rubbing as possible.
The mounting for the hinge was very
simple. I used a 1/4-inch piece of acrylic
that was glued to the back of the holder
and a 1/4-inch slot cut out from the
backer with another piece glued to the
backer on top to sandwich the part that
slides through from the holder. This
would eliminate any twisting or wobble
because there was much more surface
area along the horizontal plane.
To eliminate the rub entirely I reamed
a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Câ&#x20AC;&#x2122; shape into the hinging point to give
the holder a way to move left and right as
it hinged open. The hinging point itself
was eyeballed. As I would manually move
the holder open and closed, I kept an eye
where the mount and the holder moved
as little as possible to find a fulcrum
point. From there, I drilled through all

After some minor sanding, the dash bezel is
taking shape.

the layers and inserted a metal rod that
was bent to be held in place without any
permanent mounting for serviceability.
A magnetic cabinet latch was mounted
on top of the sleeve from the back side.
The arm that extends in and out protrudes through the backer plate. The
tip of the latch arm that is magnetized
is attached with a neo magnet to the
back side of the mount. That way when
the latch is in the closed position the
assembly would be closed. Then when
you push in the holder from the front,
it would disengage the latch and push
forward extending the holder forward to
access the opening on the side. I then had
a finished iPad mounting assembly.

Assembly Required
The next step was grafting the
assembly into the factory bezel. That
was fairly simple. All I needed to do
was align the mount, mask off the
bezel, and use a sharpie to mark the
perimeter of the mount onto the
bezel. I used my air saw to cut the
excess plastic on the bezel. Once

that was done I reinstalled the bezel
back into the Jeep. I inserted the
mounting assembly into the dash
opening and secured it in place. This
was done so that everything was perfectly aligned before using fillers to
blend into the mount.
At this point, the factory bezel was
flush with the mount. Once everything was dry some minor sanding was
done to get the shaping just right. The
parts were disassembled to begin the
finishing process. All the parts were
painted before the flocking was done.
I felt this way was just easier clean up
if I made a mistake or got any adhesive
on the paint, rather than possibly getting paint on the flocking. Again, after
everything was sanded, painted and
flocked, it was time to wire the radio
and do the final assembly!
I had a great time with this project.
Everything seemed to fall into place
with proper planning and execution.
If you have any questions you can
reach out to me on Facebook or Instagram. Thank you for reading!
facebook.com/MobileElectronics â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 53

 installs

Connect
Four

Submitted by: Oscar JL Rodriguez, Oscar’s Garage,
Corpus Christi, Texas
After seeing some of Rodriguez’s work on Facebook, client
Richard Sanchez asked him to deck out his 2015 Dodge Ram
Dually with a powerhouse sound installation. Taking it a step
further, Rodriguez decided to fabricate an enclosure to house
the four JL Audio 12TW3-D4 12-inch subwoofer drivers and
two JL Audio XD1000/1v2 mono subwoofer amplifiers. The
result was something straight out of a Hasbro board game,
complete with LED lights to emphasize the design.

54 Mobile Electronics January 2018

facebook.com/MobileElectronics â&#x20AC;&#x201A; 55

 installs

Signature
Sound

Submitted by: Cameron “Chimpo” Powell, LIS Audio Workshop, Spring Hill, Kansas
Wanting more output and clarity than what came from the factory, a client
asked for their 2014 Ford F-150 to be transformed audibly, while maintaining
the factory interior and adding a little flash with the flip of a switch. Powell
considers this type of job what he calls the “LIS Signature Installation”. That
type of build uses all AD Designs for the audio equipment. In the front doors,
the team added the AD Designs 3100 Series 6.5-inch component speakers, with
Hushmat on the inner and outer door skins to provide an ideal environment
for the mid-range woofers. They then relocated the 6.5-inch Coaxial Hertz
mid-driver’s to the rear doors and decided to add Hushmat to the
inner and outer door skins to reduce cabin road noise. Under the rear seat is a
custom LIS Audio amplifier rack that houses the AD Designs 1500.6 Premium
amplifier and 700.1 Premium amplifier, which powers the 10-inch subwoofer. A
six-channel amplifier was used to run the entire front stage active in a threeway setup. A custom enclosure was made for the center console, plus a custom
A-pillar tweeter relocation. Other product installed included the AudioControl
EQS Equalizer, Stinger HPM OFC wire and Stinger 6000 Series RCAs.

56 Mobile Electronics January 2018

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from the President

Don’t Miss Out

KnowledgeFest is Your Place to Learn and Connect with
the Mobile Electronics Community
If you missed attending CES 2018 then take heart in knowing
that you have another chance to discover your favorite brands at
KnowledgeFest West in Long Beach, California, KnowledgeFest
East in Indianapolis, Indiana and KnowledgeFest Dallas in Dallas,
Texas. KnowledgeFest is the only industry event dedicated to the
mobile electronics specialist, the installing dealer. These events
combine a trade show floor with educational workshops and
manufacturer trainings for added value to you, the attendee.
The next event is just around the corner in Long Beach California, February 23-25, 2018. This city is a great destination for West
Coast dealers, especially those in the Southern California market.
The Long Beach Convention Center is a downtown venue with
lots of nearby hotels and restaurants. And February is a great
time for manufacturers to showcase their new products and provide the best information and education to sell and install them.
The KnowledgeFest experience is designed to provide you with
the information you need to provide that experience. Here’s how:
Education
Learning from the best in our industry provides an unequalled
educational experience that now occurs three times a year. Make
plans to experience the next event in your area. These events
combine educational workshops and manufacturer trainings with
a trade show floor. No other event provides the quality and hours
of training targeted to mobile specialists. These education events
are designed provide you with the latest information to help you
advance the professionalism and profitability of your business.
Employees of MEA member companies attend all KnowledgeFest
events free of charge.
The three-day event is packed with more than 40 hours of topnotch educational workshops, great networking opportunities,
over 50 hours of manufacturer training sessions, and an exhibit
floor on which new products and categories are available to discover. Educational workshops and manufacturer trainings will
empower you to deliver exceptional customer experiences and
grow your business.
Information
Mobile Electronics Association publishes Mobile Electronics® magazine, the best read for business, sales and installation.
Mobile Electronics magazine, our Hotwire e-newsletter and various websites keep you in the know and ready for action. MEA
member companies and their employees receive free magazines,
e-newsletter subscriptions and access to MEA digital media.
Social media sites like the Mobile Electronics Facebook page also
offer ways to connect with the industry.
Empowerment

58 Mobile Electronics

January 2018

Mobile Electronics Association is the only industry group
dedicated to the 12-volt specialist. Our primary focus is help you
build your business. The MEA community is comprised of retailers, manufacturers, sales reps, distributors and service providers.
The Mobile Electronics Association is committed to growing the
mobile electronics industry and ensuring a future for mobile specialists. You can support that through your membership. Become
a part of our community. Be empowered. Let your voice be heard
and ensure your interests are represented.
Learn by Profession
The education at KnowledgeFest is comprised of three tracks
that focus on each area of expertise. For the installer, there is the
Technician and Fabricator track. This track provides a balance
of the top techniques for making physical modifications to the
vehicle as well technical expertise for key topics like remote start
and audio upgrades. The Sales and Marketing track will appeal
to owners, managers, sales professionals and those responsible
for marketing. You will learn tried-and-true processes taught
by retailers who use these techniques effectively in their own
businesses.
Also, for the entrepreneur there is the Owner and Manager
track. This year the focus will be on essential practices that every
CEO should live by. Topics will include: a day in the life of a CEO
and learning the best way to calculate your true hourly rate.
In addition to these business building topics, a special keynote
address will help you define what success in your business and
life should look like.
Peer Advice, Meet the Makers
KnowledgeFest provides the best networking opportunity in
our industry! Talk one-on-one with people with whom you do
business (or should be). Participate in your choice of 50-plus
product training sessions to get real insight on product characteristics and selling strategies to make you the expert in your
market.
Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or a relative newcomer to
mobile electronics, KnowledgeFest has something for you. Learn
from the experiences of others in our industry who have dealt
with both failure and success. Many social activities after hours
add fun to the mix.
I challenge you to join us this February in Long Beach for our
first KnowledgeFest on the West Coast.
On behalf of myself, and of the entire Mobile Electronics Association team, we thank you for being part of the only industry
event dedicated to the Mobile Electronics Specialist, the installing
dealer!